Parents use Facebook to spy on children into their 30s

Parents are using Facebook to spy on their sons and daughters more than a
decade after the children have fled the nest, according to a survey.

Social media use does not have a negative effect on GCSE grade, the study foundPhoto: ALAMY

3:49PM GMT 21 Feb 2013

Mothers and fathers of children as old as thirty admit to using the social networking website to secretly keep tabs on their social lives.

Logging in at least once per day on average, parents use the site to find out where their children have been, check who they are friends with, and get updates on their love life via their "relationship status".

University students and young professionals have repeatedly been warned that many employers screen applicants' Facebook pages, but may be surprised to learn that their parents are still doing the same long into their twenties.

Mothers were the most guilty of Facebook spying, and were 14 per cent more likely to be keeping tabs on their child's profile than fathers, according to the survey of 1,000 parents of children aged 13 to 30.

Vouchercodes.co.uk, which commissioned the survey, said even respondents with the oldest children had admitted to snooping on their sons and daughters online.

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Clare Woodward, a mother of three, said she used Facebook to "spy" on her daughters Katie, 26, adding: "I sometimes get concerned when I see pictures of her out clubbing as I know she will be drinking and I worry about her safety."

Overall two in three British mothers and fathers admitted to using the site to spy on their children, doing so for an average of 18 hours per week.

One in six of those who joined the social networking site admitted that spying on their children had been their sole motivation for doing so.

Eleven per cent of respondents justified their snooping by insisting it was the only way they could find out if their child had a girlfriend or boyfriend.

Parents' nosy behaviour was not limited to their own child's profile, with 16 per cent of parents claiming they used the site to learn more about their sons' and daughters' friends and to ensure they were not falling in with a "bad crowd".

A fifth of parents said they log onto Facebook to learn where their child has been, for example parties they have attended or places they have "checked in" to, while two per cent said they use the site to keep an eye on their child's spending.

Almost a fifth of mothers and 12 per cent of fathers admitted they prefer talking to their child on Facebook than via telephone or text message.

Duncan Jennings, of vouchercodes.co.uk, said: "Naturally parents will worry about their child and Facebook helps them keep track of what they are up to.

"Facebook allows users to share everything, meaning parents can see who their kids are hanging out with and what they're spending their money on."